On Saturday evening, before an expected roaring crowd made up mostly of Filipinos and Mexicans and a sprinkling of other nationalities, Pacquiao finally gets the chance to prove that his feat on that November night in San Antonio, Texas was no fluke.

"We’ll see if Barrera was really distracted when he first fought me," said Pacquiao, sounding slightly peeved that Barrera went to the extent of blaming the forest fires in his Big Bear training camp as the main reason why he was not mentally prepared when he fought the GenSan hitman.

Pacquiao parades a 44-3-2 win-loss-draw card with 35 knockouts, while Barrera totes a 63-5 mark with 42 stoppages.

In the months and years that followed, Barrera continued to hold accountable the decision to abandon training camp with 18 days remaining before the fight and this succeeded in convincing boxing aficionados that he might have a valid reason for putting up such a dismal showing on a night he was expected to dominate.

To make matters worse, some quarters made it appear that Pacquiao’s electrifying win was tainted, and that he was fortunate to face off with a man who, albeit physically in shape, was not in his usual mental state.

And while they never crossed paths with Pacquiao going on to rack up significant victories against Erik Morales, another major player in the super-featherweight class of 130 lbs, and a handful of worthy challengers, Barrera took his time and embarked on a rebuilding program that awarded him six wins in seven outings.

Everytime Barrera would emerge triumphant, he kept on mentioning Pacquiao’s name, hyping it even more that Pacquiao is a like a thorn on his neck.

In the past few days, Barrera has been quoted as saying that he no longer wants to delve on that dark episode of his career which took place at the Alamo State and that he is looking forward to move on.

But to do that, Barrera will have to put up an extra-ordinary effort to follow the route that he wants to take in the runup to his finals days as a fighter. Barrera hopes to close out his stellar career that kicked off in 1989 with two "farewell fights" after the Pacquiao rematch.

Despite reports that he was having problems making the 130-lb limit and that he was hot-headed on the eve of the weighin owing to the hardships of making weight, Pacquiao was sprightly when a Manila-based scribe checked him out in his room.

"Handang-handa na ako sa laban," said Pacquiao as he bobbed and wove as though Barrera was right there in front of him. He theorizes that he will be between 142 lbs to 144 lbs when he answers the bell.

During the weigh-in a few hours earlier, Pacquiao appeared distraught and "his face was dry" according to trainer Freddie Roach, who was never away whenever his prized fighter fought on American soil.

Told about Barrera’s fresh look, Roach said "Barrera looked soft" and did not appear to be concerned the Mexican also tried to put on a show for fans as proof that he was also in high spirits and is raring to go to war.

After it was announced that he had made the weight, Barrera flexed his left arm, while Pacquiao re-enacted an Incredible Hulk pose that saw his supporters go wild.

Then they were told to engage in a staredown and Pacquiao later revealed that he was the first one to blink.

"Ako nga ang kumurap eh," said Pacquiao, who was now obviously in a jollier mood.

But on Saturday night (Sunday morning in Manila), the world is finally going to see who will back down.

NOTES: After clearing a major obstacle, Manny Pacquiao ate ampalaya guisado, steamed rice, soup and fruits at backstage then feasted on chicken tinola, fish and another serving of white rice in his 61st floor suite later in the day…Freddie Roach plans to take Pacquiao on a walk to remind him of the do’s and don’ts of Saturday’s big event…Celebrities from the world of politics and entertainment have started to arrive in time for the fight. Spotted were ex-Manila Mayor Lito and son Ali Atienza, lawmaker Prospero Nograles and opposition spokesperson Adel Tamano and the entire Gutierrez clan minus Ruffa.